It Takes Two (Marvin Gaye and Kim Weston song)

"It Takes Two" is a hit single recorded in late 1965 by Marvin Gaye and Kim Weston for Motown's Tamla label.

"It Takes Two"
Single by Marvin Gaye and Kim Weston
from the album Take Two
B-side"It's Got to Be a Miracle"
ReleasedDecember 4, 1966[1]
RecordedNovember 27 & December 6, 1965, and March 2, 1966, Detroit, Michigan
GenreSoul
Length3:10
LabelTamla
Songwriter(s)William "Mickey" Stevenson
Sylvia Moy
Producer(s)William "Mickey" Stevenson
Henry Cosby

Produced by Weston's then-husband, longtime Gaye collaborator William "Mickey" Stevenson, and co-written by Stevenson and Sylvia Moy, "It Takes Two" centered on a romantic lyric that depicted many things in life (dreams, love, wishes, etc.) being better with two people instead of one. The single became Gaye's most successful duet single to date, later outperformed by Gaye's duets with Tammi Terrell.

Gaye and Weston's duet peaked at #14 on the Billboard Pop charts and #4 on Billboard′s Soul Singles chart in January 1967. "It Takes Two" was also Gaye's first major hit in the UK, where it peaked at #16 on the British singles charts in the spring of that same year.[2][3]

Personnel

Rod Stewart and Tina Turner version
"It Takes Two"
Single by Rod Stewart and Tina Turner
from the album Vagabond Heart
B-side"Hot Legs" (Live)
ReleasedNovember 1990
Recorded1990
GenrePop rock, rock and roll
Length4:13
LabelWarner Bros.
Songwriter(s)William "Mickey" Stevenson, Sylvia Moy
Producer(s)Bernard Edwards
Rod Stewart singles chronology
I Don't Want To Talk About It
(1990)		 "It Takes Two" (Duet with Tina Turner)
(1990)		 Rhythm of My Heart
(1991)
Tina Turner singles chronology
Be Tender with Me Baby
(1990)		 "It Takes Two" (Duet with Rod Stewart)
(1990)		 Nutbush City Limits (The 90's Version)
(1991)

In 1990 "It Takes Two" was covered by Rod Stewart and Tina Turner and featured in a television advertising campaign for Pepsi. It was released as the lead single from Stewart's album Vagabond Heart, produced by Bernard Edwards and released in late 1990. The duet was a European hit, peaking at #5 in the UK, and becoming a Top 10 single in several European countries. It later appeared on both artists' greatest hits albums: Turner's Simply the Best (1991), and Stewart's The Very Best of Rod Stewart (2001).

Versions and remixes
  • Album version – 4:13
  • Extended Remix – 4:51

Weekly charts
Chart (1990–91) Peak
position
Australia (ARIA)[4] 16
Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[5] 15
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[6] 6
Denmark (IFPI)[7] 1
Europe (European Hot 100 Singles) [8] 7
Finland (Suomen virallinen lista) [9] 12
Germany (Official German Charts) [10] 22
Ireland (IRMA)[11] 4
Italy (Musica e dischi) [12] 4
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[13] 3
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[14] 19
Spain Radio (PROMUSICAE) [15] 36
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[16] 11
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[17] 10
UK Singles (OCC)[18] 5

Year-end charts
Chart (1990) Peak
position
Italy (Hit Parade Italia) [19] 32
Netherlands (Single Top 100) [20] 50
Chart (1991) Peak
position
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40) [21] 214

Other cover versions
  • Susan Jacks remade "It Takes Two" for her 1982 album Forever: her duet partner on the track was Tom Lavin.[22]
  • In 1989 a Children In Need charity single was released (retitled "It Takes Two, Baby") featuring BBC Radio 1 DJs Liz Kershaw and Bruno Brookes with Jive Bunny and Londonbeat. It charted at Number 53 in the UK Singles chart.[23][24]
  • In 1990, Kim Weston teamed with the late Marvin Gaye's brother, Frankie Gaye, to record a new version of the song called "It Takes 2", which was used as promotional imaging for Detroit television station WJBK-TV Channel 2.[25]
  • In 2009 Namibian singer Nianell and South African singer Dozi brought out an album of cover versions called It Takes Two, which included the song of the same name.[26]

References
  1. http://www.dftmc.info/titles/ti-16.htm
  2. The Complete Motown Singles Vol. 6: 1966 [CD liner notes]. New York: Hip-O Select/Motown/Universal Records
  3. Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 225.
  4. "Australian-charts.com – Rod Stewart & Tina Turner – It Takes Two". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved October 1, 2015.
  5. "Austriancharts.at – Rod Stewart & Tina Turner – It Takes Two" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved October 1, 2015.
  6. "Ultratop.be – Rod Stewart & Tina Turner – It Takes Two" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved October 1, 2015.
  7. Danish Singles Chart 30 November 1990
  8. "Hits of the World" (PDF). Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. December 22, 1990. Retrieved October 2, 2015.
  9. "Singlet 1990-12 joulukuu" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved October 1, 2015.
  10. "Tina Turner - Top Titel" (in German). GfK Entertainment. Retrieved October 1, 2015.
  11. "The Irish Charts – Search Results – It Takes Two". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved October 1, 2015.
  12. "Hits of the World" (PDF). Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. January 12, 1991. Retrieved September 29, 2015.
  13. "Dutchcharts.nl – Rod Stewart & Tina Turner – It Takes Two" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved October 1, 2015.
  14. "Charts.nz – Rod Stewart & Tina Turner – It Takes Two". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved October 1, 2015.
  15. Fernando Salaverri (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (1st ed.). Spain: Fundación Autor-SGAE. ISBN 84-8048-639-2.
  16. "Swedishcharts.com – Rod Stewart & Tina Turner – It Takes Two". Singles Top 100. Retrieved October 1, 2015.
  17. "Swisscharts.com – Rod Stewart & Tina Turner – It Takes Two". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved October 1, 2015.
  18. "Tina Turner: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved October 1, 2015.
  19. "I singoli più venduti del 1990". Hit Parade Italia. Retrieved October 2, 2015.
  20. "Jaaroverzichten - Single 1990" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved October 2, 2015.
  21. "Jaarlijsten 1991" (in Dutch). Stichting Nederlandse Top 40. Retrieved October 12, 2015.
  22. https://secondhandsongs.com/performance/450182/versions
  23. https://www.officialcharts.com/artist/25822/bruno-brookes-and-liz-kershaw/
  24. https://secondhandsongs.com/performance/5777
  25. "It Takes 2" video
  26. "takealot.com". Kalahari.com. Archived from the original on 2014-10-19. Retrieved 2016-09-29.
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